Citizensreportgy.com
‘I don’t think many of them (overseas based Guyanese) will come back’- Granger
A 16-member delegation, including four ministers and ‘honorific’ advisors, addressed the one-day investment conference held on June 10 at the Harvard Club, New York.
And in last Friday’s broadcast of ‘The Public Interest’, President David Granger was asked about a New York trip he made the day after, where he and several other officials attended a jubilee celebration event. The question put to Granger was, “You spoke to importance of diaspora investments to the country. What impact do you see these investments having on the local economy?”
Admitting that he did engage persons in New York about investing in Guyana, he said, “I don’t think many of them (overseas based Guyanese) will come back.”
He added, “What I asked them to consider is the possibility of investment…the diaspora has access to capital…they have capital to invest…many of them have expertise….I appealed to them on those two grounds.”
Granger did not answer the question put to him, relative to what impact investments will have on the local economy.
The Head of State did mention the June 10 investment conference, saying that his New York trip the day after was a follow up visit, not a stand-alone trip for the jubilee celebrations. He also mentioned a visit to Canada last October by a large Government contingent, aimed at getting Guyanese based in Canada to invest.
Eight months after the Canada trip and nine days after the June 10 investment conference in New York, there have been no disclosures by the Granger-led A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) Government about what investments proposals materialised from the two trips – if any.
Granger was also asked if he was privy to any of the business plans put forward at the June 10 investment conference. He said, “I don’t have any concrete plans; like I said Minister of Business, Dominic Gaskin was there before (on June 10).”
On the question of concessions for foreign investors, he made clear that he has not “committed” himself to any concession regime. “At this point in time, I cannot confirm a package,” Granger said.
In the last year, there have been no major announcements regarding foreign direct investments in Guyana. The country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at the end of 2015 dropped below projections to three per cent.